India's cricketers headed for Sydney's famous Bondi Beach instead of the training ground as the fate of their Australian tour hung in the balance over a bitter race row.

The Indians had been scheduled to travel to Canberra Monday to prepare for a tour match but remained in Sydney following the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decision to informally suspend the tour.

The row erupted after Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh received a three-match racism suspension for allegedly calling Australia's Andrew Symonds a "monkey" and the Indians accused the host nation of breaching the spirit of the game.

There was little evidence of the tensions that have wracked the team since Australia's ill-tempered win in the second Test in Sydney as India's players emerged from their hotel late Tuesday morning.

Officials offered no word to the waiting media on whether the tour would resume, although Singh nodded his head and said "yes" when asked if he was confident about successfully appealing the suspension.

Making the most of the unplanned rest day, the Indian players made a short coach trip to Bondi, some playing an impromptu game of beach volleyball with local surf lifesavers before having lunch at a surfside restaurant.

The match in Canberra against an ACT Invitation XI is supposed to begin Thursday but organisers said Cricket Australia had not announced whether it will go ahead.

No date has yet been set to hear Singh's appeal, with the Indian camp expected to submit the necessary documentation to start the process sometime Tuesday.

Officials, players and fans will be hoping the impasse can be resolved in time to save the third Test in Perth beginning January 16.

Sydney's Daily Telegraph estimated Cricket Australia could lose 50 million dollars (43.5 million US) if India withdraws from the tour and the sporting body has to pay compensation to television broadcasters.